Life Without Parole for Woman Who Sold Fentanyl Used in Fatal Overdose

Posted on October 27, 2026 by Admin SA

(Left to Right: Prosecutor Frank Sullivan, the remnants of the dose of fatal fentanyl, Danielle Cooper at trial)

Danielle Cooper will spend the rest of her life in prison after being found guilty Tuesday of Death Caused by the Distribution of Fentanyl, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Cooper, 42, sold $100 worth of fentanyl at her residence to Regina Vasconcelos on Oct. 5, 2021. The victim was found dead in her home the next day, a used syringe by her side. The amount of fentanyl in her system was found to be 20-30 times higher than the fatal level.

Jurors deliberated for 23 minutes after Prosecutor Frank Sullivan’s closing argument before returning its verdict. In Florida, Death Caused by the Distribution of Fentanyl is a capital felony. Cooper was immediately sentenced to Life in prison without the possibility of parole. She was already serving a 30-year sentence after being found guilty in March 2023 of Trafficking in Fentanyl (more than 14 grams but less than 28 grams).

“This case is a textbook example of why fentanyl is so dangerous – it is a very deadly drug made in clandestine labs and neither the traffickers nor the people they sell it to have any idea how potent it is from batch to batch,” Sullivan said. “The potency of different samples within the same batch can even differ.

“This particular defendant bragged about how potent her drugs were as she continued to sell them knowing the potential dangers and consequences,” he continued. “Our law enforcement partners, like the Bay County Sheriff’s Office’s Special Investigations Division in this case, will continue to track down the source in overdose deaths and we will continue to prosecute them under Florida’s enhanced laws.”

The victim was found dead in her home Oct. 6, 2021, after she missed a dialysis appointment and the clinic contacted her sister, who had just returned to her out-of-state home after spending about a year here caring for the victim. She testified that her sister suffered health problems including the removal of her spleen and one kidney, COVID, open-heart surgery, and that her remaining kidney was failing.

The sister called the Bay County Sheriff’s Office for a welfare check and gave them permission to ender her sister’s home. They found her body inside.

Investigators developed evidence – including texts between the victim, the defendant and a witness – that the defendant agreed to sell her fentanyl Oct. 5, 2021. The witness said she drove the victim to Cooper’s residence and saw her obtain the “green” and “glassy” substance identified as fentanyl.

Investigators served a search warrant on Cooper’s residence Oct. 8, 2021, and saw her throw a bag of fentanyl from her truck. They found another baggie of fentanyl in her bra and she was subsequently charged with trafficking.

In November 2022, after a full investigation and toxicology results, Cooper was also charged with the victim’s death.

Dr. Jay Radtke, Medical Examiner for the 14^th Judicial Circuit, said while the victim suffered health problems that required prescription medications, the level of fentanyl in her system was so high that it would have killed her no matter what else was in her system.

Basford thanked the Bay County Sheriff’s Office and Medical Examiner’s Office for their continued work on this case. For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

Man Who Sold Fatal Dose of Fentanyl Sentenced to 30 Years

Posted on October 19, 2026 by Admin SA

A fentanyl trafficker whose customer died of an overdose minutes after the sale was sentenced to 30 years in prison Friday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Nicholas Sterling Chagnon, 42, of Parker, pled guilty to Manslaughter, Trafficking in Fentanyl (4-14 grams), and Sale or Delivery of Fentanyl Friday. He was then sentenced to 30 years in prison, with the first 3 years being minimum-mandatory.

Prosecutor Peter Overstreet was prepared to call witnesses and present evidence proving Chagnon sold a fatal dose of fentanyl to his 34-year-old victim on July 15, 2025 at a beach business. The victim paid the defendant $60 for .5 grams of fentanyl and overdosed minutes later in the business’ restroom.

Prosecutor Peter Overstreet in an earlier court proceeding.

“Over and over again we see these traffickers selling a highly dangerous and unpredictable drug without a care in the world for the consequences,” Overstreet said. “It is not a secret to them that fentanyl is not only very potent, but that the potency of each dose can vary wildly and it’s deadly.

“The Panama City Beach Police Department knows this as well and we are grateful for the time

and effort they put into the case that helped resolve it without a trial.”

The evidence would have shown that the defendant met the victim at a beach business to sell him .5 grams of fentanyl on July 15, 2025. The victim went straight to the restroom, ingested a portion of the drug and died.

The investigation, which included surveillance video from the business and CashApp data history, helped identify the defendant as the seller. The following day, July 16, 2025, the defendant was pulled over on Front Beach Road for texting and driving in a crowded area. A PCBPD K-9 alerted to the odor of narcotics in the vehicle and a search turned up 5.2 grams of fentanyl in four baggies.

The defendant admitted selling the fentanyl to the victim.

Basford thanked the Panama City Beach Police Department for its thorough investigation that helped lead to a successful outcome. For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

Man Found Guilty of Trafficking Fentanyl, Sentenced to 30 years in Prison

Posted on July 16, 2026 by Admin SA

A jury needed only 13 minutes Thursday to find a man guilty of Trafficking in Fentanyl (more than 28 grams) after he drove from Fort Walton Beach to sell an ounce and a half of fentanyl to a Panama City Police Department confidential informant, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Mario Ardale Donaldson, 24, of Fort Walton Beach, was also found guilty of Unlawful use of a Two-Way Communications Device. Circuit Court Judge Dustin Stephenson ordered the 30-year sentence, which includes a minimum-mandatory 25 years and a $500,000 fine under Florida’s enhanced drug trafficking statutes.

Prosecutor Christopher Walters called two Panama City Police Department Corporals who testified Donaldson agreed to the sale through a confidential informant March 11, 2025. The defendant was known as a fentanyl dealer, and told police he was “fronted” the drugs before driving to Panama City. That means he had to pay back his dealer once he made the sale.

But when he got back to Panama City and went to the designated spot for the transaction, he instead was detained by Panama City police.

During questioning at the Panama City Police Department, it was learned the defendant was carrying a large bag of fentanyl in his groin area. He retrieved it for police and admitted his participation in the day’s activities.

“This is a large amount of fentanyl and the Panama City Police Department did an excellent job of reacting to information it developed and making an arrest before it could hit the streets,” Walters said. “Fentanyl is so potent and unpredictable, and it is a plague on the community.”

The testimony and evidence proved that a confidential information told police he knew someone selling large amounts of fentanyl. He called the defendant, with police monitoring, and set up the deal.

Basford thanked the Panama City Police Department for its quick action in the case.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.